Rosie debuts her new show tonight on OWN
Rosie O'Donnell says if you build it, they will come.
The viewing audience, that is.
What O'Donnell is talking about is her new talk show on the Oprah Winfrey Network. But don't tune in, she says, expecting koosh balls to be shot at the camera and looking for the same old Rosie. O'Donnell says the Rosie that fans loved for six seasons on her previous talker isn't going to show up for the new show.
Even so, she says she feels like the same person. Just older. She's almost 50 now, where she was in her thirties when she did the talk show thing the first time. The difference is that back then, she was a much more gentle Rosie. This time, she's just Rosie.
O'Donnell says she is opinionated and that will shine through in her new show. She also says people will either like her….or not. And she's perfectly fine with that.
Russell Brand will be her first guest, followed by Salma Hayek, Lisa Kudrow, Gloria Estefan, Kevin Bacon and Fran Drescher.
The show debuts tonight, and it will be live, the preferred format for O'Donnell. She doesn't like repeating herself.
We don't like it either, Rosie. Just give us Rosie…pure, blunt and simple. Just like we like it.